Typical sandal designs utilize a simple slab of elastomeric material formed with a flat bottom and vertical sides. Such sandals have many disadvantages, particularly when utilized at the beach or near a swimming pool and when the wearer runs or makes sudden stops or turns. In wet areas, the sandals easily splash water onto the person's foot and back. Where the ground is very soft, such as on loose sand, the sandal easily turns to one side, since the holding straps do not easily permit a person to prevent such turning as is possible with shoes, and this can lead to injuries to the foot. On hard wet areas such as on the deck surrounding a swimming pool, there is a danger that the sandal can hydroplane on the water and cause the person to slip and fall. Over an extended period of use, a common type of damage to sandals formed of slabs of elastomeric material, is pocking of the sides of the sandal, resulting from repeated outward bulging of the side edges due to the weight of the person compressing the slab of material. A sandal that avoided many of the most common problems with sandals, would provide added protection to the user against splashing and injury, and provide a longer lifetime of use of the sandal.